


Fight With Tools

by the10amongstthese3s



Series: The Gremlin Gets a Sword [2]
Category: Six - Marlow/Moss
Genre: Anne will not give up on this sword!, Cleves and Parr help the gremlin, Jane is just trying to be a good mum, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-28
Updated: 2019-11-28
Packaged: 2021-02-18 06:56:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21590359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the10amongstthese3s/pseuds/the10amongstthese3s
Summary: Anne Boleyn needs to prove that she can be trusted with a sword. Thankfully, Cleves and Parr are happy to help.
Series: The Gremlin Gets a Sword [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1555999
Comments: 19
Kudos: 142





	Fight With Tools

Anne Boleyn wanted a sword. 

No. Anne Boleyn needed a sword.

Of course, to her dismay, Jane Seymour didn’t see eye to eye with her on the topic. For a while, after Jane confiscated the sword from her (at the car boot sale Parr had dragged them to) Anne made a point of being petty. The girl would refuse to help with dinner because god knows she “couldn’t be trusted with such sharp knives”. She would even go as far as to play video compilations on the TV with clips from Xena: Warrior Princess of the titular character sword fighting.

It wasn’t until Jane confronted her one day that Anne had an ingenious idea.

“You can’t have a sword if you don’t know how to use it!” Jane had pointed out, a look of frustration on her face as she explained this for what must have been the hundredth time.

If you don’t know how to use it.

That phrase stuck in Anne’s mind like some playground taunt, almost as if it were a challenge. Determined as ever, Anne gave a grin and devised her plan. The plot to regain access to her sword.

For starters, she knew she would need the help of the - ever so studious - Catherine Parr. To Anne’s surprise, Parr had been happy to help her research whatever she needed. 

“Bo, look at this! The first swords appeared in the third millennium BC! How cool is that?”

She should’ve known Parr just liked the excuse to be a history nerd. Giving a smirk, Anne decided to entertain the girl’s need to spout off random facts, giving an enthusiastic “wow” or “cool” to each one. In return, Parr helped her to find passages detailing the various techniques used during duels, and the history of sword fighting for sport. She even found video clips online and made sketches to help Anne understand the parts about various defence stances.

The next victim on Anne’s list was Anna of Cleves. 

Between preparing for the show, actually performing, and studying with Parr, Anne didn’t have much free time to spend with Cleves. So she decided to begin their sessions in the dead of night whilst the others slept.

It was 1am when Cleves was woken by a wooden sword being thrown onto her bed. “What the-“ Before Cleves could yell, Anne slapped a hand over her mouth and gave a mischievous grin. 

“Double trouble.”

Giving a groan, Cleves rolled her eyes before nodding. “Double trouble,” the sleep-deprived woman repeated the mantra back to Anne, making her give a hyper giggle as she dragged her down the stairs and out into the garage.

It didn’t take long for this to become a routine. The girls would meet in the garage at 1am every day, practice for an hour or so, then head back to bed as if nothing happened. Anne quickly discovered that Cleves had past experience in fencing. Instead of being frustrated by her constant losses though, Anne couldn’t help the excitement that fuelled her at the prospect of being taught by someone who understood what they were doing.

This plan was perfect. 

After two months of research and physical training, Anne finally began to win their duels. She was learning, developing. 

It was the beginning of the third month when Anne asked the queens to come to the theatre slightly early for warm-ups. At this point, it had been so long since Anne had mentioned it that Jane had almost completely forgotten about the topic of the sword. That is until Anne lead her, Parr, Kit, and Aragon to sit in the front row of the auditorium.

“Now, as some of you may know, a few months back Lady Jane Seymour stole something from me. A commonplace item known as a sword that I fairly purchased with my own hard-earned money,” Anne began, making Aragon bury her face in her hands with a groan. “Your reason for taking my sword was that it was unsafe for me to have it in my possession if I didn’t know how to use it. Isn’t that right Lady Seymour?”

Jane gave an amused nod at this, ready for whatever dramatic stunt Anne was about to pull.

“Now, with the help of my faithful assistant-“ “Oi!” “I shall prove to you that I, Anne Boleyn, am perfectly qualified to own a sword.”

The queens weren’t sure what they were expecting to see, but it definitely wasn’t Anna of Cleves being completely destroyed in battle by Anne Boleyn. The wooden swords smacked together in a violent, yet almost choreographed way. It was almost like watching gymnasts perform as the women danced around, their footwork meticulously precise.

After a misstep from Cleves, Anne managed to trip her, giving a grin as she stood above the woman, wooden sword held high. To her surprise, her ears were suddenly filled with the sound of something more than her heavy breathing.

Applause. 

“Go Annie!” Kit cheered, the others stood around her with wide smiles on their faces as they clapped.

Giving a grin, Anne helped Cleves up before giving a bow. 

“So…?”

Looking at the others for a moment, Jane couldn’t help chuckling. “Well, I suppose you did go to a lot of trouble to prove your worth,” Jane pointed out with a small smile, “I suppose you can have it back so long as it’s kept somewhere safe. If I find that bloody thing in the piles of laundry on your bedroom floor it is going straight in the bin! And don’t forget I can take it right back if you get hurt.”

Unable to hold back the rush of adrenalin that overcame her, Anne leapt off of the stage and into Jane’s arms. “Thank you! Thank you!” The girl beamed joyfully. “You better not make me regret this, my little Raggedy Anne,” Jane mused, holding the girl close.

The content embrace was interrupted though when Kit spoke up from beside them in an excited tone. 

“I want a sword too!”

“ABSOLUTELY NOT.”

**Author's Note:**

> People wanted more of the gremlin girl with a sword so I hope this is okay! I have a ton more ideas if anyone would like a part 3? 😊 As always, thank you so much for reading! 🦆 (Extra thanks to Gal_In_The_Public_Eye!)


End file.
